Why is parthenium called as “Congress” in India?

Image: Wikipedia.

In 1950s, india was going through a famine. Indian National Congress decided to import wheats from USA. The wheat was of inferior quality and was a controversial one. With that wheat, the seeds of this deadly weed were mixed. Some says it was a deliberate mistake from Uncle Sam, other says it was an innocent mistake.

Whatever, the then congress government didn’t bothered to do a quality check before distribution of wheat and hence this weed’s seeds to masses. Even when it started appearing, the then Congress government didn’t heed to it. It later resulted into an epidemic. These circumstances led people to name this weed as “Congress Grass”, a gift of congress to nation.

This weed is equally dangerous for all flora and fauna. It is highly dangerous for humans. It sucks the nutritious substances from soils, thus converting fertile ground into unfertile ones.